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Oil Companies Show Active Interest in Mexican Energy Tracts

More than 40 potential bidders seek access to geological data under country’s first oil auction in eight decades

By

Laurence Iliff

Updated March 31, 2015 4:48 p.m. ET

MEXICO CITY—More than 40 oil companies have sought access to geological data under Mexico’s first oil auction in eight decades, showing interest in the process is holding up despite stubbornly low oil prices, according to the nation’s hydrocarbons regulator.

Since the auction, dubbed round one, kicked off in December, foreign and local oil companies have paid fees for access to data containing seismic information for the first set of...